Kyrie Irving has been a legitimate NBA star for years now, and he is one player on the Dallas Mavericks who already owns a world championship ring.
Those Mavs trail the Boston Celtics 2-0 in the NBA Finals, and they will look to get back into the series when Game 3 tips off in Texas on Wednesday evening.
Big man Daniel Gafford is one of the newest members of the Mavs, and he said that Irving was one of his favorite players when he was growing up and that he even wore the guard’s signature sneakers, per NBA TV.
“Kyrie was one of my favorite point guards when I was growing up. I used to wear his shoes all the time and now I’m wearing his shoes in the Finals.” 🔥
Get to know Daniel Gafford with a little rapid-fire Q&A ahead of tomorrow’s Game 3 of the #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/KNmY9kXaLm
— NBA TV (@NBATV) June 11, 2024
In early-February, Dallas was struggling to stay over .500 when they acquired Gafford from the Washington Wizards, as well as P.J. Washington from the Charlotte Hornets in a separate trade.
Gafford, a 6-foot-10 power forward who can comfortably play the 5, has given them some much-needed size and rebounding up front ever since his arrival.
In 29 regular season games with the team, he averaged 11.2 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 1.9 blocked shots in 21.5 minutes per game, and he has largely kept up that type of production in the playoffs.
However, the Mavs will likely need more offensive production from him during the NBA Finals, especially since Irving has been struggling so much.
Irving, who played two seasons with the Celtics not too long ago, is shooting just 35.1 percent from the field and is 0-of-8 from 3-point range against his former team.
If Dallas loses Game 3, it can virtually kiss the world championship goodbye, as no NBA team has overcome a 3-0 series deficit in any round of the postseason.
